Locomotive steam boiler



Sept. 18, 1934. e. H. EMERSON LOCOMOTIVE STEAM BOILER' Filed June 19, 1953 4 Sheets-Sheet l Sept. 18, 1934. 7

G. H. EMERSO-N 1,973,802

LOCOMOTIVE STEAM BOILER Filed June 19, 1933 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Sept. 18, 1934. G. H. EMERSON LOCOMOTIVE STEAM BOILER 1933 4 Sheets-Sheet Z Filed June 19 Sept. 18, 1934. G. H, EMERSON 1,973,802

LOCOMOTIVE STEAM BOILER Filed June 19, 1933 4 Sheets-Sheet A Patented Sept. 18, 1934 1,973,802? LOCOMOTIVE; STEAM BOILER George H; Emerson, Baltimore; Md. Appli'cation June 19, .1933, Seria1:N0;'676,558

8'- Claims.

This invention relates to locomotive steam boilers of *Water tube fire-box: type, and'particularly to'locomotive-steam boilers in which the locomotive barrel, in addition to its functionas.

"a-water storage reservoir and" pre-heater, alsoserves as-a-steam' generator; whereby-the steam generating capacity of the; locomotive is greatly increased; More particularly-stile invention relates toa locomotive steam boiler designed-iand o) constructed to. supply superheated steam-in large volumeand'at-high working pressure-to the steam cylinders.-

With locomotive boilers of the single. shell xtype of conventionalconstruction; or' those having a -'singleb'arrel of large storage. capacity; itris im'-.

possible to produce: a boiler with sheets thick enough to' safely carry. a high .workingzpressure, of 500ilbs', or more persquare inch, because: of.

the impracticability of employingmetal :of' essentia'l thickness to give the. necessary; four factors:

as :requiredibyzthe- Cl C; for. locomotive tboilers- For. example, if as boiler: of 80" in diameter is used, in order to .enable' it 2 to carry a pressure 0f :500'lbs; of steam'per square in interstate service.

inch, metal'of'a thickness: of 1%"is:v required; Metal ofthisgthickness-is not T011137 very. di-flicult;

to. roll, bend; or form, but can not be :practically used'ibecause of its: tendency tocrack-longitudinally under: the .imposed:.strains: The: making of a=longitudinal .joint with'z-metal. of this thick-1 ness wh'ich 'willc'be-steam'tight :at such high pressure -is1a1S'0 .practically impossible because of the difiicultyz of driving rivets through a-plural-ity of layer-sofmaterial of thisthickness.

One object -o-f=my invention is to 'provide'a boiler of--'the-specified 'type in-whichthe barrel part of." the -locomotive-;- instead of beingcomposed. of: a single =barrel or drum of 'large' size, is :constructed 40 pi a-plurality of'water circulating-and steam gen-- 'erating-drums of relatively; smaller sizes,- which willbe capable ofibeing constructedfor'efficiently generating and safely carrying a' steam pressure of ,500;lbs.- persquare inch or more, and-at-the same time, admittingof the use of readilyworkedt metal giving; the necessary saiety factors and keepingtheweight ofthispart of ,the. locomotive boileroat 1a: satisfactorilylowfigure.

Azfurther object of .the inventionis. to. pro- -vide a 1 locomotive boiler having. abarrel come I posed. of as. plurality of drums. so. constructed. and: proportioned. that the main drum. carrying thee-tubes may be made of..a diameterlnot exceeding lo, so that. the, thickness of the plate required in: its constructionneednotbe greater than 1" in order'toproduce amajor drumembodying all the necessary safety factors.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a locomotive steam boiler of the type set'forth in which Water circulating and steam generating drums comprising-component parts 7 of' the locomotive fire-box and the-barrel'are united to a front water leg or equivalent con ductor and-with each other in such-manner as to be strongly tied and braced, so that maxi-'-- mum durability and strength to withstand the im-- posed'strains may be obtained without'making the structure of prohibitive weight;

A- still further object of the invention. is to provide a locomotive steam boiler ofthe type set forth inwhich-a multiple drum water circulating and'steam generatingbarrel may be efiicientlycombined'with a single-drum type of water tube fire-box of such a construction, for example, as that disclosed inmy prior Patent No. 1,869,309;

A still further objector" the invention is to provide a locomotive steam boiler of the typeset: forth in which one-of the drums of the'barrelcomprises'a steam storage conductor arranged at thehighest-level of the steam generatingsystem and connecting the steam space of the frontwater" le'grwith the superheater header of the steam SUPEY'rhCElJiD-Q system of the locomotive, whereby superheated steam-in'large volume and at high working pressure may be supplied to the steamcylinders;

With these and other objectsin view, which" willsappear in the course of the sub-joined description; the invention consists of the novel features of construction, combination and arrangement of parts, hereinafterfully shown and'described, reference beingghad to the accompanying drawings, in which:- I

Fig. 1 ma perspective view of the fire-bo-x-and' barrel portions (partsbeing omitted) of a locomotive embodying my invention.

Fig; 21s a side'elevation of the same.

Fig, 3* is an-enlarged cross-section taken sub:- stantially online3-3 of'Fi'g. 2; Y

Fig. 4 Ba sectional plan view of the front water leg. and. drums and associated parts connected therewith;

Fig.5 is a .view inside shown in Fig. 4.

In the locomotive structure herein shown for: purposes of exemplification, 1 designates thefire box portion and 2 the barrel portion of the-locomotive'boiler, of which only those parts essential to the disclosure-of the invention areillustrated. As'shown; the-firebox portion is of water tube elevation of the parts front and rear water legs 3 and 6, said drum being connected by nipples 11' with the upper headers 9, and vertical banks or rows of water circulating tubes 12 connecting theupper header 9 with the lower header 10 at each side of the firebox. The construction of the parts comprising or included within the firebox structure may be generally the same as in the single drum type of water tube firebox shown in my aforesaid Patent No. 1,869,369, or any other suitable type of water tube firebox structure may be employed.

.The barrel portion 2 of the locomotive instead of comprising a single large barrel or drum of the necessary maximum water containing and steam generating capacity, as in conventional constructions, is of plural drum or barrel type,

and, as shown in the present instance, comprises a,main central longitudinal drum or barrel 13 and a group of superposed drums 14, 15 and 16. The drum 13 serves as a main water containing 0 and steam generating drum which extends between the throat sheet 4 at the front of the water leg 3 and the front flue sheet 17 at the rear of the smoke box 18 and contains the fire tubes 19 and superheater unit flues 20, which tubes and flues 19 and 20 are fastened to the flue sheets 5 and 17 and convey the products of combustion from the firebox to the smoke box, whereby the said fire tubes and flues and the water contained in the drum 13 are heated, after which the prodnets of combustion enter the smoke box and thence exhaust through the smoke stack 21 to the atmosphere. The drums 14 and15, onthe other hand, serve as water circulating and steam gen- I crating and collecting drums which are closed 5 at their forward ends and communicate at their rear ends with the water leg 3 and are supported from and connected with the upper portion of the drum l3 by conducting saddles 22, whereby the water and steam rising from the top of the drum '-13 are allowed to flow to the water leg so as to establish a circulation between the drum 13 and said water leg, while the steam passing from the' drum 13 to the upper drums 14 and 15 is'allowcd to quickly release itself therein from the water 5 and to flow from the drums l4 and 15 to the highest point in the water leg 3. The steam and hot water generated in the drum 13 passes to drums 14 and 15 and then together with the steam from the firebox drum 11 into steam storage drum 16. The drum 16 is positioned between and above the drums 13, 14 and 15 and at a high level, in a plane above that of the horizontal center of the drum 11, or above the surge line, and this drum serves as a storage drum for holding and conveying to the superheating system of the locomotive steam inlarge volume andat very high temperature and pressure ready to be subjected to superheating treatment. v

In the preferred construction as disclosed, the Firear end of the drum 11 extends through the water leg 6 and is provided with a suitable closure 23,- thesheets 7 and 8 being flanged outward, as at 24, to receive the drum, and the forward end of the drum fits within an aperture in the sheet 5,

ward ends and communicate at their bottom portions through the saddles 22 with the upper portion of the drum 13, and at their rear ends said drums 14 and 15 fit within openings in the sheet 4 which is flanged out for their reception, as at 26. The drum 16 is in communication at its bottom portion with the upper portions of the drums 14 and 15 through nipples 27 and is in communicating connection at its rear end with the water leg 3 through a nipple 28, and said drum 16 is in communication at its forward end through a conducting union 29 with the superheater header 30 of the superheating system of the locomotive located within the upper rear portion of the smoke box 18. In this union or connection 29 is a controlling and shut oii valve 31. The drum 13 is suitably joined at its forward portion to the smoke box 18 and is fitted at its rear end in an opening in the sheet 4, which is flanged out, as at 32, for its reception. The drum 11 and water leg 3 are reinforced at their point of connection by a hip sheet 33 and suitable reinforcing connections are provided between the drums 11, 14 and 15 and between said drums and the sheets 4 and 5 to stay the said parts against all stresses and strains, while permitting them to have the necessary universal play due to expansion and contraction.

These reinforcing connections consist of cross braces 34 and 35 in each of said drums, longitudinal stay bars 36 extending through the water legand connecting the cross braces of the drums with each other, and stay rods 37 each connected at one end to a cross brace of a drum and joined at its opposite end to the throat sheet 4 or; back flue sheet 5 of the water leg, as the case may be, to securely couple and brace said parts while allowing sufficient relative motion between them to compensate for expansion and contraction.

With the construction described it will be seen Y that the water containing and steam generating elements of the barrel instead of being embodied in a single drum or barrel comprise a plurality of drums or barrel members, one of which, the main drum or barrel 13, provides a barrel of suflicient diameter to contain the storage water and the fire tubes and superheater unit heating tubes connecting the firebox with the smoke box, whereby the storage water is heated to such a high temperature as to convert the said drum or barrel member 13 into a water heater and steam generator. This water heater and steam generator 13 is in water flow communication directly with the major portion of the water leg 3 and indirectly through th drums l4 and 15' with the upper portion of water leg 3, whereby a circuit is established for the back and forth flow of the water. The highly heated water flowing from the drum 13 into the drums 14 and 15 liberates its steam therein which steam is conveyed through nipples 27 into dry steam storage drum 16, wherein it meets with the steam generated in firebox drum l1, conveyed through nipple 28 and upper portion of water leg 3 and from storage drum 16. It then passes through the union or connection 29 to the superheating system of the locomotive for superheating the steam in the usual way. As by this con struction a large volume of steam under very high pressure, such as 500 lbs. or more, may be generated for supply to the steam cylinders, and due to the great volume of generated steam, and to its high temperature and pressure, and the greater rapidity with which the steam is produced, a

maximum amount of superheated'steam'will always be available for supply to the steam cylinders when the locomotive is in use and a greater 25. The drums 14 and 15 are closed at their forsteaming eiiiciencyand power will be obtained, w'hile,.owing to the high level of the drum 16, surging of water thereinto and its flow to the superheating system and its condensation therein will be effectually prevented. A high pressure boiler is thus produced in which a pressure of 500 lbs. of steam per square inch or more may be safely carried and the drums made small enough but of metal of essential thickness to give the necessary four factcrsias required by the I. C. C. for locomotive boilers in interstate service. The construction, furth rmore, provides 7 for the ready and economical use of metal of a thickness which can be readily worked and which in use is not liable to crack or to become disrupted under the imposed strains, and, owing to the comparative thinness of the metal used, joints may be produced by riveting which will be steam tight at the high steam pressure employed. While these advantages are gained, another and important advantage is also gained, in that the described construction of the barrel enables a barrel of great strength to be produced without malaingits'weight unduly great or prohibitive.

While I preferably employ my novel construction of barrel with a water tube firebox boiler employing a single water circulating and steam generating drum, as in my prior patent referred to, it will, of course, be understood that the novel barrel construction may also be employed in connection with any other construction of water tube firebox suitable for the purpose. Also while the general construction disclosed is preferred, it will be understood that changes in the form, propor- 1tion, details of construction and arrangement of parts may be varied from that shown within the scope of the appended claims, without departing from the spirit or sacrificing any of the advantages of the invention.

What I claim is:-

1. In a locomotive steam boiler, a firebox having front and rear water legs, a barrel communicating with the front water leg and having a smoke box at the front thereof, fire tubes extending through the barrel and communicating with the firebox and smoke box, a superheater system carried by the barrel, a water and steam drum at the top of the firebox, upper and lower headers at each side of the firebox, the lower headers being in communication with the water legs and the upper headers in communication with opposite sides of the drum, water tubes connecting the upper and lower headers at each side of the firebox, a pair of water and steam drums arranged above the barrel on opposite sides of the center line of the locomotive, said drums being in communication at their rear ends with the front water leg and in communication with the barrel at a plurality of spaced points between .their front and rear ends, and a steam storage conductor disposed above and in a vertical plane between the pair of water and steam drums, said conductor communicating at its rear and front ends respectively with the front water leg and steam superheating system and communicating at a plurality of points in its length with each of said pair of drums.

2. In a locomotive steam boiler, a firebox having front and rear water legs, a barrel communicating .with the front water leg and having a smoke box at the front thereof, fire tubes extending through the barrel and communicating with the firebox and smoke box, a superheater system carried by the barrel, a water heating and steam generating means in the firebox and communieating with the front and rear water legs, a plurality of steam generating and water circulating drums disposed in advance of the front headerand above the barrel, each communicating at its rear end with the front header and at a plurality of points in advance thereof with the barrel, and a steam storage conductor disposed above said drums and communicating at its front and rear ends respectively with the front header and the superheating system and communicating between its ends at a plurality of longitudinally spaced points with. each of said drums.

3. In a locomotive'steam boiler, a firebox having front and rear water legs, a barrel communieating with front water leg and having a smoke box at the front thereof, "ire tubes extending through the barrel and communicating with the firebox and smoke box, a superheater system carried by the barrel, a single centrally disposed water heating and steam generating drum of large diameter disposed within the firebox and communicating with the front and rear water legs, a plurality of steam generating and water circulating drums disposed in advance of the front header and above the barrel, each drum communicating at its rear end with the front header and at a plurality of points in advance thereof with the barrel, and a steam storage conductor disposed above said latter-named drums and communicating at its front and rear ends respectively with the front header and the steam superheating system and communicating between its ends at a plurality of longitudinally spaced points with each of said drums.

4. In a locomotive steam boiler, a firebox having front and rear water legs, a barrel communicating with the front water leg and having.

a smokebox at the front thereof, fire tubes extending through the barrel and communicating with the firebox and smoke box, a superheater system carrier by the barrel, a single, centrally disposed water and steam drum at the top of the firebox and communicating with the front and rear water legs, upper and lower headers at each side of the firebox, the lower headers being in communication with the water legs and the upper headers in communication with opposite sides of the drum, water tubes connecting the upper and lower headers at each side of the firebox, a plurality of water and steam generating drums arranged above the barrel, each of said drums communicating at its rear end with the front water leg and at a plurality of longitudinally spaced points with the barrel, and a steam storage conductor arranged in a horizontal plane above said plurality of drums and above the plane of the horizontal center of the drum in the firebox, said conductor communicating at its rear and front ends respectively with the front water leg and steam superheating system and communicating at a plurality of points in its length with each of said drums of the plurality of drums.

5. In a locomotive steam boiler, a firebox having front and rear water legs, a barrel communieating with the front water leg and having a smoke box at the front thereof, fire tubes extending through the barrel and communicating with the firebox and smoke box, a superheater system carried by the barrel, a water and steam generating means within the firebox including a drum located wholly in the firebox and in communica ion at its forward end with the front water leg, a pair of water and steam drums arranged above the barrel on opposite sides of the center line of the locomotive, said drums being in communication at their rear ends with the front water leg and incommunication with the barrel at a plurality of spaced points between their front and rear ends, and a steam storage conductor disposed above and in a vertical plane between the pair of water and steam drums, said conductor communicating at its rear and front ends respectively with the front water leg and steam generating system and communicating at a plurality of points in its length with each of said pair of drums.

6. In a locomotive steam boiler, a firebox, a barrel, 2. water leg between the firebox and barrel, a water and steam generating drum within the barrel communicating at its forward end with the water leg, a pair of water and steam generating drums arranged above the barrel on opposite sides of the longitudinal center line of the first-named drum and in communication at their rear ends with the water leg and in advance thereof with the barrel, reinforcing connections between the first-named drum and each of the second-named drums extending thereinto through the water leg, and reinforcing connections between the water leg and each of said drums movably jointed to the water leg.

7. In a locomotive'steam boiler, a firebox, a barrel, a water leg between the firebox and barrel, a water and steam generating drum disposed within the firebox and communicating at its front end with the water leg, water and steam generating drums disposed above the barrel and in communication therewith and communicating at their rear ends with the water leg, and reinforcing connections between said drums extending through the water leg and between each drum and the water leg, the latter-named reinforcing connections being pivotally connected to the water leg.

8. In a locomotive steam boiler, a firebox, a barrel, a water leg between the firebox and barrel, a drum within the firebox, drums above the barrel, said drums communicating with the water leg and barrel, and reinforcing connections between the drums and water leg rigidly fastened to the drums and extending in part through the water leg and including members extending from the drumsinto the water leg and pivotally connected with the latter.

GEORGE H. EMERSON. 

